Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1887-10-21
THE WORLDS BIG GUNS
some of the Monsters Built for IN. "a,
aud Forts of Foreign Power. ss

some of the Monsters buiit for the sh,
aud Forts of Foreign Powers ss
The progress of thirty years IN co,.
structing heave guns has been extract
binary. The largest pieces found 81
war vessels in 1860 threwa ball weIon
ing sixty-eight pounds. with nm init :,
velocity of 1870 feet per second and
an energy of /. 100 foot tons. Now
initial velocities in high-power snn,
have been increased tc 2 100 feet: M,
jectiles at the maximum weight =
2, 800 pounds, and in some cases a..
propelled by charges of nearly half
ton of powder. while the 11o-ton puns
of the Ban Bow reach an energy =
about GO 900 foot tors.
Passing over the triumphs OBJ aimed
by intermediate calibers, which wer,
remarkable in their day. we find th.,
the largest French steel guns. such !.
are used for The armament Of tha
Terrible, completed at Brest ,he
Requin, built at Bordeaux. IN,
Indomitable. built at l. Orient, and the
Caiman. finished at Toulou, weigh each
about seventy six tons. They deliver
a projectile weighing Lie pounds
with muzzle velocity of | .73g f.et
per second. and muzzle energy ~
80 900 foot tons. The guns are riHed
braeehloader5. The French have othor
powerful guns. those constructed on
the Bange system being well known.
The Armstrong gun now mounted
for service in the Italian armor-clads
bullion, Dandolo. Italia and Lepanto
weigh 100 tons each. and throw pro-
i,ctile of 1000 pounds. These have
long been familiar. but the la er
breach-loading guns are Improvements
over the early muzzle leaders. The
most powerful of them take a powder
charge of about 772 pounds and have
an initial velocity of 1885 feet per
second and muzzle energy of 5l.Oo)
foot tons. Guns of los tons have also
been made at Elswick for the Frances.
co LAURA, the Andrea Dona and the
Morosini. In these the weight Of the
charge il 9oo pounds, the weight Of
the projectile 1000 pounds, the muzzle
velocity 2.019 feet per second, the muz-
zle energy 56,5t7 foot tons. These
will undoubtedly prove most formida-
BILE weapons.
The largest Knapp gun weighs near
~ 1l9 tons. 1t is over 46 feet long
has caliber of 154 inches, and fires
shot weighing 2 81 pounds. with
muzzle velocity of 1900 feet. The
maximum elevation gives it range
of nearly y miles. Its power OF pene-
tration into wrought iron is estimated
at about Il inches at the muzz.e, 2l
inches at the distance of l. 100 yards,
and 80 inches at 800 yards. At the
distance of miles its striking average
is i'll about %. 0)0 foot tons The
Italians have two of these guns mount
ed in shore battery, for which pur-
pose they are intended.
The f lglish 1l0-ton gun. manufact-
ured at Elswick, is about A feet long,
and its actual weight 247, 785 pounds.
The screw block, removed in loading,
weighs 2t tons. The pr ,ctile is a
bolt weighing 1900 pounds. and l6t
inches in diameter With $50 pounds
of powder the actual muzzle velocity
! attained was 2 07S feet, and the muz
z,e energy 81 900 foot tons; so that
with $50 pounds. which the gun is con.
structed to use, an energy on the pro-
jectile of 81 700 foot tons is ex-
| pccted. The recoil of the gun is
very small The British also have Il
powerful new gun in their g. ton
steel brcechloader, which will be car
ricd on the Ro lncy. H is expected to
throw IS }-inch shot, of 1850 pounds
with powder char ye of $50 pounds,
and to attain 2.100 feet muzzle
velocity. SIoIld these expectations
be rcaliz ID. this gun. though much
lighter. will be more destructive than
the S0-ton gun of the Inhexible, which
takes pr jaciile of LOO pounds, with
II car ridge of 40 pounds. reaching a
muzzle velocity of l 600 feet.
1t is said that the next step at
tempted in heavy gun construction
will be that of a 150-ton monster, this
pr ject being attributed to the Essen
works. 1t would throw shell six feet
long. weighing ton and hall
There are also some guns under con-
struction which are expected to ac-
complish great results on somewhat
new theories, rs in the case of the one
manufactured for Colonel Hope. This
is to take an enormous powder charge,
and to have corrcspondingly great
penetrative eff ct. But without going
into the possible successes of the
future. those which have already been
achieved are sufficiently astonishing -
| n Y Sam